Fruit-sorting machine.



FE. Bu PHASE,

- FRUIT SOBTING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED NOV. 18, 1907.

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. b swig wga awm 9m Patented Sept. 15/19024 F B. PHASE.

FRUIT SORTING- MACHINE. APPLIGATION FILED NOV. 18, 1907.

Patented Sepia. 15, 1908 i- SHEETSSHEBT 2.

Mia? 58 T3 0 /l I! I2 2 JI HIMHMQL WETNEEE;

To an whom Lt may concern:

FRANKLIN B. PEASE, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK.

FRUIT-SORTING- MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

' Patented Sept. 15, 1908.

Application filed. November 18, 1207. Serial No. 402,651.

Be it known that LFRANKLIN B. PEAsE, a

' citizen of the United States, and resident of Rochester, in the county 'of Monroe and in construction, simple in operation, and.

.State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fruit- Sorting Machines, of which the following is a specification.- This invention relates to fruit sorting ma chines, and has for its object to provide a device for the purpose of sorting or grading fruit, of different sizes, which shall be cheap which will handle the fruit as aforesaid rapidly and with minimum damage thereto.

in the drawings Figure 1 is a perspective view of the complete device; Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof; Fig. '3 is an elevation of Fig. 2, partly broken away; Fig; 4 is aperspective view of a detail; Fig. 5 is ailongitudinal central section of the-part shown in Fig. 4 and Fig. 6 is an enlarged view showing some of the parts illustrated in Fig. 3, but'in a different position. v

T16 device comprises, in br1e f,'a table,

having legs 1, 1, 1,1 1, and a top made up of lon itudinal bars 2 that 'are separated from eac other a suitable distance (Fig. 2).

Boards 3 extend across the back and along the sides of the table-top, forming in combi;-' nation with the latter, ahopper in which fruit may be placed. Converging boards'4 ;at thefront ends of the boards 3, serve to guide the fruit which is too large to pass through the sorter into a suitable receptacle. ThGfCIOSS braces 5, '5', of the le s 1, etc.

serve tosupport a leg.6,.which iS'dlVidGd by boardsY, 7 into-two or more parts. Into the separate trays or chutes thus formed the fruit in dilferent sizes drops from the'sorting mechanism,-'and fruit of each size runs down its respective chute into a receptacle placed atthe lower end thereof.

The upper sides of the bars 2 are rounded (Fig. 1) so as to present a non-abrasive sur face to the fruit. The said bars are so placed as to have a sli ht downward slope toward the front end of the machine (Figs.

3 and 6), and constitute part of a channel,

'the bottom of which has a series of sorting In the present the bars 2 at suitable intervals, for the urpose of receivingthe sorting on s 10. he construction of said cups isil ustrated in Figs. 4 and 5.

fruit-exceeds the dimensions of the ring, it is Y passed on to the next cup toward the front, y means of a suitable mechanism hereinafter described. The cups increase in size toward the front of the machine, so that fruit ofsmaller diameter may pass through the cups at threar, and fruit of larger diameter through those nearer the front.

, Each cup orring 11 bears a forwardly-extending fork 12- and a rearwardly-extending fork l3. 7 end of the fork 13, and are adapted to lie in the bearing-recesses 9 of the bars 2. Pins 15 (Fig. 6) driven into said bars above the trunnions 14 prevent the latter from being lifted upward from said recesses. The rings or cup ortions 11 rest in the recesses 8, and the for s 12 lie upon or overlap the rear fork 13 of the cup next toward the front of the machine. Each pair of bars 2 and the cups Trunnions 14 are cast on the rear 10, supported thereby comprise a channel down or along which fruit may he moved from the rear to the-front of the machine, and the cups constitute a bottom for the channel.

' A shaft 16, having a drive-pulley '17, is supported by'bearings 18 in one side-frame of t e machine, approximately at the center thereof (Figs- 1 and .3). On the said shaft is a cam 19, the lower edge of which bears downward upon the ends of a pair of bails 20 and 21 (Fig. 3), which are pivoted to themachine frame at 22 and 23, respectively. on the lower end of said bails are rollers 24 and 25, which-extend transversely tothe bars 2 and support a movable'rack 26.

25 downward, iand so to move the bails 21 about their respective pivots 22 and 23, thereby holding the upper ends ofsaid bails constantly against the lower. edge of the cam 19.

I The rack 26 is composed of a. pair of longitudinal bars 27, held together by transverse bars 28. The latter are spaced the same dis- I The weight of said rack tends to force the rollers 24 and.

moves with the cam 19 and imparts a for ward and backward movement to the rack 26. At the same time the face of the cam 19 acts upon the bails 20 and 21, causing them face 29 on said fingers.

to lift and lower said rack vertically. The rack rides upon the rollers-24 and 25 in its longitudinal movement, The cam 19 is so placed with regard to the pitman that the rack is raised to the position shown in Fig. '6 whenat its rear limit of travel, and then is carried forward to the limit of movement in that direction, and finally lowered again and moved backward. In the upward movement the fingers 29 are projected through the rings 11, and fruit resting in said rings is.

displaced therefrom by means of the curved The rack 26 is then 1 carried forward and the fingers 29 travel along in the forks l3 and 12, pushing the fruit before them down the inclined bars 2 into the next cup ahead. If this next-cup is larger than the one from which the fruit was removed, the latter drops through'it and falls into the chute below. If said cup is too small for .the fruit to pass through, the next movement of the rack carries the fruit another ste forward, and finally it reaches a rack has been carried forward to thelimit of travel by the pitman 30, the cam face allows -'the inner ends of the bails 20 and 21 to lift,

thereby lowering said rack as aforesaid. The pitman by this time has passed the dead center, and the backward movement of the rack begins. j

In Fig. 3 the rack is shown nearly at the limit of its rearward movement; in F 6 it is shown in solid lines at the beginning of the forward stroke; and in the same figure the dotted lines show the fingers 29 at the extreme forward osition. Y

If a piece of ruit should become jammed or wedged tightly in any cup, the finger 29 beneath strikes the fruit, and the frult and cup together are lifted (Fig. 6), the latter turning upon the trunnions 14. -The operators attention is thus called to the wedged fruit, and he may release it by hand. The free yielding, or tiltin movement of the on s 10 thus permitte prevents injury to eit er the fruit or the machine.

Any size ofelcups may be substituted for those in the machine, for thepurpose of grading different fruits. Plums or peaches, for instance, require smaller cups, as a rule, than do a ples. To remove any cups, the pins 15 whicl are driven into the bars 2 above the trunnions 14 are tool, such as a pair of pliers. The cup'may then be lifted out of the frame, a new one put in its place, and'the pins 15 again driven in.

WhatIclaimis:

1. In a fruit sorting machine, a channel, a bottom therefor having a series of removable, changeable, yielding bottom pieces, each having a sorting orifice, and means adapted I to project into each orifice from beneath and 'to move fruit therefrom to the orifice of the next bottom piece in the series.

2. In a fruit sorting machine, a channel, a bottom therefor having a series of tilting bottom pieces, each having a sorting orifice, and

'means adapted to project into each orifice from beneath and to move fruit therefrom to the orifice of the next bottom .piece in the series. i

3. In a'fruit sorting machine, a channel, a

pulled 'out with a suitable bottom therefor having a seriesof tilting bottom pieces, each pivoted in said channel and each having a sorting orifice, and means adapted to project into each orifice from beneath and to move fruit therefrom into the next orifice in the series.

4. In a fruit sorting machine, a channel, a bottom therefor having a series of removable, changeable, yielding bottom pieces,'each having a sorting orifice, a series of movable fingers, one for each orifice, and means for moving said fingers upward into the orifices and toward the next orifices in the series.

5.; In a fruit sorting machine, a channel, a bottom therefor having a series of tilting bottom pieces, each having a sorting orifice, a series of'movable fingers, one for each orifice, and means for movmg said fingers upward into the orifices and toward the nextorifices in the series. I V 6. In a fruit sorting machine, bottom therefor having a series of tiltin bottom ieces, each pivoted in said channe and each aving a sorting orifice, a series of movable fin ers, one for each orifice, and means for movmg said fingers upward into the orifices and toward the next orifices in the series;

7. In afruit sorting machine, a channel, a bottom therefor having a series of yielding bottom pieces, each havin a sorting orifice, a'series of upri ht mova'b e fingers, one for each orifice, an means for reciprocating said a channel, a

fingers upward into the orifices, then forward along the series, downward and backward.

8. Ina fruit sorting machine, a channel, a

bottom therefor having a series of tiltin bottom' pieces, each having a sorting ori ce, a

series of movable fingers, one for each orifice,

bottom therefor having a series of tilting bottom ieces, each pivoted ,1n said channel and each 'iavmg a sorting orifice, a series of movable fingers, one for each orifice, and means,

each having a sorting orifice, a series of mov- 'able fingers, one for-each orifice, and'means '20. for moving said fingers upward into the ori- I fices, then forward, then downward and backward. r e

12. In a fruit sorting machine, a channel, a

series of bottom pieces for said channel, each 25 having trunnions and: a sorting orifice, the

said channel having bearings for the trunnions, and means adapted to project into each orifice from beneath and to move fruit therefrom into the next orifice in the series.

13. In a fruit sorting machine, a channel, a

series of bottom pieces for said channel, each having trunnions and a sortingorifice, the

i said channel having bearings for the trunnions, a series of movable fingers, one for each orifice, and means for reciprocating said fingers upward into the orifices, then 'forward, then downward and backward.

14. In a fruit sorting machine, a channel, a

ieces therein, each removably pivoted in said channel and series of-bottom pieces for said channel, each having trunnions and a sorting orifice and a portion adapted to rest on the next bottom piece in the series, the said channel having earings for the trunnions, and means adapted to project into each orifice from. beneath and to move -fruit therefrom into the next orifice inthe series.

15. In a fruit. sorting machine, a channel, a seriesof bottom pieces for said channel, each having trunnions and a sorting orifice and a portion adapted to rest on the next bottom iece in the series, the said channel having earings'for the trunnions, a series of movable fingers, one for each orifice, and means for. reciprocating said fingers upward into the orifices, then forward, then downward and backward.

16. In a fruit sorting machine, a channel, a series of upwardly, yielding parts forming the bottom of the channel and each having a sorting orifice, and means adapted to project into eachorifice from beneath and to move fruit therefrom to the next orifice in theseries.

17. In a fruit sorting machine, achannel, a series of upwardly yielding parts forming the bottom of the channel and each having a sorting orifice, a seriesof movable fingers, one for each orifice, and means for moving said fingers upward into said orifices, then forward toward the next orifices in the series, then downward and backward to positions under said orifices.

- FRANKLIN B. PEASE.

Witnesses:

'D. GURNEE,

L. THoN. 

